Looking for Fishlook Island

We used to do this every lunchtime back in the day. Before school took Miranda away from me!

Before that I used to kick the ball with Greg... no wonder I took to riding my bike instead!

Lunchtime perambulation

I got talked into going with Miranda in a little mapmaking expedition

Hmmm.

Stuck up a Gum Tree

From last weekend in Rans Wood climbing trees whilst we waited for the rain to pass! Mip is getting a bit better at climbing but still doesnt get the basics. Like don't wear wellies if you want to stay up...

Miner's Lamp

Now this is one of my Dad's painting from 1962 I think. I really like the paintings from this period although they are quite dark in charcter, after with knives and guns and suchlike.

Something tells me this is a painting that passed to Norman, then to Martin Parker. Norman apparently collected Miner's lamps after visiting Grampy back in the day!

Johnstown CP School

Not sure where I got this photo from but I suspect a Facebook share. It's the tree laying ceremony when we moved to the new school building in Johnstown. You can see me just above the headmaster, needless to say I am not headboy planting the tree!

Various familiar faces,but Miss Pile Davies my teacher I can remember by name.

Miranda and her ClayPhone

She's an imaginative kid, and loves making things. But this one she has also played with a lot.

In Reflective Mood

Your scribe on his perambulations, had reason to wonder at the meaning of life the universe and all that. No conclusion could be drawn, but an impression was made.

Been doing this along time, and we won't be stopping any time soon...

Miranda in Rans Wood

Having blogged using Blogger for quite a long time, I am keen to keep up the habit but I've struggled in recent years if I am honest. It's such a slow process compared to other social media. I much prefer the diarist perspective, although it sits in it's own space which has it's advantages, it's also harder to find - and since I started doing this mainly for my Mum's benefit, ease of use is a big factor! This photo is an attempt to recreate the habit.

The girl has just walked into my room and she's smiling at the photo. "At least you can see my lovely shimmering eye shadow " she says.... " Hmmmm, is got a dash between them!"

Eiffel Tower Calling

The phone rang as I was pedaling down the road. I wasn't expecting it to be Lewis, what a nice surprise to share their exploration of Paris!

Just like old times

I have spent many hours encouraging these guys to sail, and communicate with each other. For various reasons, mainly associated with being brothers four years apart, it hasn't always worked smoothly. Nevertheless although the boys ultimately abandoned their joint effort, we have seen a few sailing sessions this autumn. And long may it continue.

Time travels

One of the highlights of my summer was the chance to meet up with an old chum Andrew Scourfield. Andrew and I went to Johnstown Primary School together, and here's an old photo rediscovered by my bro Christian. Date is somewhere close of the sixties - the radiogram is still pride of place, and just look at those curtains. Juliet could be wearing Grammar School uniform so maybe 1969.

Anyhow whilst Gregory was sailing at Weymouth, Andrew happened to be holidaying at Poole with his wife Shirley. We spent a lovely afternoon watching the boats on the water from the cafe on the shore, catching up on old times and where life had left us. Fifty years more or less has passed since this photo, amazing isn't it?

Round The Island 2017

Greg competed with his 29er sailing companion George Richards aboard H2 Sailing's yacht Wight Spirit on the weekend. The crew were largely youth sailors with more than half of the sailors under 17 years old.

They finished in second place in the Youth Trophy which is a fab result. Seventh fastest boat in their class against all adults.

Roads we travel

Chatting to Gregory yesterday about how we see ourselves as hip dudes, living in the present, but really we are just stuck in the past. But nothing compares with this image, when I'm guessing I was around 8-10 years old.

These two old dears lived out near our rented house near Capel Iwan, before we moved into Carmarthen. They shared their house with their animals, and the manure heap was just outside the front door. Sisters I think, but when they moved on, that was the end of the story. Reminds me very much of On The Black Hill by Chatwin. Photo taken by my father, with me peeking over the gate

Domino fallen down

Just a few weeks ago before I went down to Wales I stood at the gate chatting to Barry about the tired state of Domino. When we moved to Hythe one of the first bonds we made was with Barry and Janis who look after a large number of waif and stray animals. We got stuck in and helped look after their animals, and the kids who were very small at the time learned to ride the donkeys.

Originally this was Domino and Jennifer, although we lost Jenny some years ago. So many happy memories of when the kids were small, playing with the donkeys, goats, chicken etc taking them on walks, cleaning up all the debris and feeding them at bedtime....

Tremendously sad to discover that Domino died whilst I was looking after Dad, so here's a fave photo of him in our garden, eating (what else would you expect) from when we still could coax him out.

I see you

Artful composition of Father Brown circa mid sixties. This church yard seems to have provided inspiration for both Dad and Ken, the cross figuring prominently.

The Good Life

I've been lucky enough to have a whole ten days alone with my Dad, other than an occasional visit from my brother Christian. Mum has been visiting my sister in Germany so an interesting time has been had.

Naturally a few new photos have been found and scanned which I will share over coming weeks. It's also been interesting because I have been reading my uncle Jeremy's memoirs, which has made vivid a period in my life when these things were talked about, but not necessarily taken in fully.

This photo could well have been taken by me since it relates to the seventies rather than the sixties, by which time I was the main 'tog other than Dad. The photographic line of influence roughly begins with my great uncle Dennis who was a keen photographer. He photographed my parents wedding and many other social events which give us such an interesting record of life back then. My parents subsequently had a friend in their early twenties who was a keen observer of life with his camera; his name was Ken. Ken's life came to an abrupt end late sixties, and by then my Dad had begun taking photographs.

Enter stage left....

This is one of Ken's photographs, he had a special relationship with my parents and loved being around us a young family. I have read some lovely letters he wrote to my parents, and the photos speak for themselves of course.

He processed his photographs in a tiny space quite literally under the stairs in a little two up, two down house in the valleys. I am hoping my Mum will add some detail to the narrative of these images.

Date 1964?

Torn

Do I look like I am enjoying myself?

Training session

I was joking with my Dad about looking forward to coming down to play trains shortly, and it got a mischievous response.

I am indeed going down for a week fairly shortly, and I am sure it will involve some trains...

Diggers at Dawn

 

We passed this grimy JCB today when we were out walking. You'd hardly think that the bodywork was all made out of fibre glass, but I guess this was the time when curved body panels were for mass marked manufacture, not bespoke production. Anyhow here's a matching pic of me playing with my beloved JCB5C